


Patching Pain With Presents

by The_Mouse_of_Anon



Series: Scarlet Inertia Week [2]
Category: Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Blue Beetle (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Day 2: Gifts/Presents, I REGRET NOTHING, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Khaji Ad singing, Multi, Red and Khaji Ad being good partners to Thad, Scarlet Inertia Week 2017, Supervillains with a healthy relationship, They're Cute Though, look at Red and Khaji Ad being giant saps
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-06 05:02:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 704
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20285845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Mouse_of_Anon/pseuds/The_Mouse_of_Anon
Summary: ‘I got you something’ were the most dreaded words in the English language as far as Thad was concerned. Every time he’d ever heard it from Zoom it was always right before he got thrown into one more situation he didn’t want to be in. So when Red bashfully said, “I got you something,” that worry slammed full-force into his mind.((Written for Scarlet Inertia Week 2017.))





	Patching Pain With Presents

**Author's Note:**

> If anyone's curious, [this is the song that Khaji Ad starts 'singing'.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9r2pEdc1_lI)

‘I got you something’ were the most dreaded words in the English language as far as Thad was concerned. Every time he’d ever heard it from Zoom it was always right before he got thrown into one more situation he didn’t want to be in. A new friction-less suit? _Go fight Flash or Impulse and make their lives hell for me._ A suit that had a stealth mode that could disguise him as Bart so he’d be less likely to be harassed? _Go take Impulse’s place for me and sabotage that family from the inside._ More reliable communications systems built in? _Listen to me bitch and complain constantly over how you’re doing everything wrong no matter how hard you work— no it’s not good enough and how dare you question me._ A decent computer that could almost keep up with him? _Learn how to use this so you can be useful for once— and while you’re at it work your ass off until I’m satisfied that you’re better with computers than Impulse can ever be._ It was always a trap, a back-handed gift, another way to use and manipulate and maneuver him to whatever ends Zoom had— all while constantly being given the message that no matter how hard he tried that it would never be good enough.

So when Red bashfully said, “I got you something,” that worry slammed full-force into his mind.

Thad eyed him warily, not quite looking at him head on. “Yeah? What?”

The slightest hint of a frown crept onto Red’s face. He knew how to read Thad by now; he knew when Thad’s walls would creep up. “…Did I say something I shouldn’t have?”

“No… goddamn it Red, don’t fucking look at me like that,” Thad snapped as he crossed his arms. “I get it. I’ve got fucking issues. You don’t have to look at me like I’m fucking damaged.”

“I’m _not_,” Red protested. “I don’t think you’re ‘damaged’ or whatever. All I did was get you a present.” He hesitated for a moment, but then the armor retreated from his face to linger around the edge of his jaw. “I _don’t_ think you’re damaged. But when I accidentally set you off because of the shit that asshole put you through, then yeah, it hurts. Because I don’t _want_ to hurt you… I love you. I want to do good things for you. And if I know what sets you off, then I know what to avoid so I don’t remind you of that awful bullshit.”

Thad fidgeted, struggling with himself between his kneejerk reactions and what he wanted. After a long minute or two of silence he grumbled, “You’re a fucking sap.”

Khaji Ad gave a trill at that, moving the ‘leg’ on Red’s shoulder to wave at Thad— almost as if to make certain the speedster wouldn’t forget him— before deliberately coiling that tendril into the shape of a heart for a moment.

“You’re a sap too. You’re both fucking saps, and you’re making me fucking blush because you’re both assholes who insist on getting me goddamn presents when I didn’t ask for anything.” He might have been acting irritated, but it was obvious that he was trying to let his walls down again.

“Amor, it’s called a ‘present’ for a reason.” His tone had a teasing edge to it, even though he was acting like he was stating the obvious.

“The fuck ever.”

“…Sooooo… Does that mean presents are okay? Or no?”

Thad fidgeted again, looked away, looked back, and desperately fought not to smile as Khaji Ad started trilling the tune of _Only You_. “…You are both _gigantic fucking saps_… but that’s okay. And I guess presents are okay. Just… try to avoid the words ‘I got you something’ next time?”

The smile Red gave lit up his face. “Got it. Next time it’ll just be ‘I got you a present’-”

[Or I could ‘sing’ at him.]

“-or Khaji Ad could sing at you like he is now.”

Thad tried to fight down the joy starting to bubble in his chest, but he wasn’t all that successful. “Giant. Fucking. SAPS. Just show me what you two got me already before I lose my mind.”


End file.
